Hi Scotty, I am driving the above car for about 18 months and have about 70K miles on it. It is Korean made as I live in Israel. The car is quite reliable and economical. The car tends to run warm but no idiot lights or warning lights come on in this regard. Over the last 8 months I have been losing coolant. I have replaced the thermostat and plastic coolant reservoir, among other things. The transmission is 6 speed automatic. Only when driving uphill, if I leave the rpms around 2K, the car throws error code 89, beeps and loses power. No code is thrown if I downshift and raise rpms around 3K or 4K, with or without using the paddles. No such code is thrown when driving on flat ground or gentle climbs. Please advise. Thank you.
Error 89 is something to do with the cooling system (thermostat), but since you already changed it, with no solution, it’s time to move to to the other bits in your cooling system.
Watch Scotty’s video, how to fix an overheating car, that should take you through all the steps to diagnose the issue.
Have you already checked all radiator hoses for leaks & replaced the radiator cap?
@inthrustwetrust
not sure if the new thermostat, about 2.5 years old, is OEM. Also, please provide link to Scotty's video.
Here you go -
@inthrustwetrust
see also:
and
any thoughts or recommendations?
@inthrustwetrust
I am hoping that the code 89 and the coolant leakage are related
Sure it could be that part. Have you already got it diagnosed/looked at?
@inthrustwetrust
yes. but no consensus. replaced reservoir bottle last week. Helped a little bit. Another mechanic wants to replace the radiator. It is pretty hard to find a really good mechanic here in Israel.
That’s why it’s important to get a correct diagnosis first, before starting to replace expensive parts. Finding a good honest mechanic is a difficult task all over the world these days.
@inthrustwetrust
I think that I have been using an honest mechanic. but over the years he has become extremely busy with many customers: mostly driving older Toyotas!. The mechanic is good and honest but sometimes lacks the knowledge discussed here
@inthrustwetrust
Hi again. and thanks so much. Regarding the radiator cap, is there a cap additional to the radiator reservoir cap?
If I’m not mistaken, in the Sonic turbo, that’s the only cap.
@inthrustwetrust
mechanic replaced radiator reservoir cap, free of charge. but, still throwing code 89 in same situation perhaps less frequently. Coolant loss seemed to improve but keeping an eye on this. Mechanic could not find source of coolant loss